Ginspiration: five fresh ways to celebrate World Gin Day in London

Got G&T fatigue? Here are five fresh trending ways to drink mother’s ruin in London, just in time for World Gin Day

1. Oranges and lemons

Fruity is the latest trend; great for those who’ve overdosed on classic ginny formulas (guilty!). Given that citrus is a common botanical, try a gin that’s amping it up. The City of London Distillery has developed Murcian Orange Gin and Six Bells Lemon Gin – sample them in £10 G&Ts at CoLD’s very own bar. For a more Mediterranean slant, Malfy gin in Sicilian Blood Orange or Limone flavours can be enjoyed for £6 during Rivington Greenwich’s G&T happy hour (5pm-7pm, weekdays). Fruity and affordable.

2. Planet-friendly

Hyke is a relatively new gin in a sprawling mother’s ruin market (England now has more distilleries than Scotland thanks to the ‘ginaissance’) and its base spirit is made using grapes that are surplus to the supply chain. Try it in a fancy G&T at Hawksmoor Spitalfields or head to Fam just off Oxford Street, where they’re mixing it in rooibos-heavy cocktail False Eyelashes. It’s just £6 for World Gin Day London, with 50p of each drink going to food charity The Felix Project. Do your bit while on the booze.

3. Pink and frozen

Getting pink in the sun is now socially acceptable. Spanish restaurant group Camino has made its slushy take on the classic G&T even more fun with the addition of red fruits to form the Pink Med G&T (£8 across all London locations). Or go even more vibrant at the Big Chill House in King’s Cross, where they’ve created a ‘rose-tinted rooftop’. The contents of your glass – a Frozen Pink G&T (£8.50) – should match the bar’s flushed makeover.

4. Zero heroes

The boozeless movement continues apace, with loads of alcohol-free gins launching. Seedlip is the most common in London bars – and it may be best enjoyed in a saintly take on a Singapore Sling at Bar Three in Spitalfields (£6.50). Or try Stryyk’s Not Gin, a party drink without the hangover used in cocktails sans booze at Heads + Tails in West Hampstead (generally a great spot for low-ABV drinking). And then there’s Ceder’s, an alcohol-free spirit with gin’s all-important juniper among its botanicals. Sip it in a mocktail at the City’s Sky Garden – where the altitude will make you dizzy enough.

5. Gin and chronic

CBD has seeped into the bar world like smoke through the floorboards in your student digs. While many places are adding cannabis oil to cocktails, Homerton’s vegan pub The Spread Eagle is one of a few that’s mixing it with gin to create the perfect pun: The Gin & Chronic (£9.50). The drink also features elderflower and lime, so you can get even more of the green stuff in your system. What a way to unwind.

Laura Richards is Associate Editor and Drinks Editor at Time Out London. She started her Time Out journey in 2014, working as a Digital Producer. Over time, London’s unparalleled drinking scene dragged her in deeper. Laura knows London’s drinks scene inside out, having written about the capital’s bars, pubs and late-night spots for close to ten years – from high-end cocktail joints to down-and-dirty boozers (her favourite!). In 2017, her first book on the subject, ‘111 London Pubs & Bars That You Shouldn’t Miss’, was published. She also has an actual qualification in wine and spirits (yes, that’s a thing) from WSET (the Wine and Spirit Education Trust). Don’t ask her what her favourite drink is – she likes them all. Except sambuca. Nobody likes sambuca.

She now looks after all bar, pub and drinking content, as well as Travel, Property and Kids supplements.